Homeless shelter set for Christmas opening

The project will see the Trust’s homeless centre moving from its location on Monks Road, to a new larger building on Beaumont Fee.

The building is costing over £2 million, with £1.6 million coming from the government’s Places of Change Programme, and the rest from the PCT, county and city councils, and Framework Housing Association.

There will be 21 beds in 19 en-suite rooms with kitchen facilities, a large social hub with a kitchen providing meals both to rough sleepers and to residents unable to cater for themselves.

A training room will also be available, with access to computers along with a dedicated surgery for visiting health workers.

The existing centre, which has been running for 12 years, regularly has to turn away people.

There are a number of homeless people in Lincoln with many being over 35 with exhausted options. The cycle of homelessness is very difficult to break and life expectancy for rough sleepers is 42 years.

Brenda Shiels, Nomad Trusts Service Manager, said: “The benefits of moving are that individuals will have their own rooms, freedom to come and go, disabled access which we don’t have on our current site, and access to training and work opportunities.

“Residents will be able to stay longer in order to ensure that they learn all the skills required to maintain independent living, this should help address the revolving door situation which we currently experience with some of our service users.

“Six beds will be kept as emergency night by night admission for those harder to reach individuals who can then move to the longer term beds when assessed as ready to engage.”

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